Forever and Always
by nighttimesshadow
Summary: Ichigo was too late to tell Rukia about his feelings for her. What if he was given a second chance? T for teen to be safe.
1. Prologue

~Prologue~

No matter what he did, Ichigo would always find his feet wandering back to the same spot. He stood at the foot of his old friend's grave. His first and only love's grave. '_Rukia Kuchiki_' Ichigo ran his hand along the indentations that spelled her name. This place was almost the same as it had been six years ago. At first, the pain from the memories that her grave brought back was too much for Ichigo to bear. Now, he wound that her could handle it. The pain was still there though; a dull ache in his chest where his heart was that reminded him of what he had lost.

_Rukia._

If only he had confessed sooner rather than hiding his feelings from her for so long. Even if she did not return his feelings, it would have left Ichigo with one less regret in his life. He placed the flowers he had been carrying right in front of her grave. He paused for a moment, breathing in the fresh scent that the lilies gave off. They had been her favorite flower. Rukia's favorite flower. His phone rang, a welcome distraction to the sadness that lingered here. Ichigo checked it: it was Renji. He sighed, knowing what his friends would say if he told them where he was.

_"Why can't you just let her go?"_

Love was not something you could ever let go no matter how much time passed. He could never let her go. Ichigo turned around and walked away to a place where he could pretend to be completely happy.

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A.N.: I have no idea how I got this idea. I was reading fanfictions, and the idea came to me when I was trying to sleep. I'm sorry it's so short. I know this fic seems really sad right now, but I promise that this fic will have a happy ending! :3 I hate sad endings. In truth, I actually wrote this before I wrote my one shot, but I held back on this one, posting the one shot first. I wasn't sure when I was writing the one shot, but I have decided now that I am going to put Sixth Cycle on hiatus for a bit. Won't be too long, I promise! I will finish writing every single one of my fics no matter what.

Please review! I love reviews~


	2. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach. Only the detergent :(

* * *

_They say, "The mind forgets what the heart cannot", especially if it left a wound. A wound that is so deep that even time cannot heal. Mending a broken heart is a choice, some may say. Some people choose to move on while others drown themselves in the misery of the past. Rukia's death is the hardest thing that has ever happened in my life. Her death made me regret most of the choices that I've made in my life. And up until now… I still haven't moved on._

~Chapter 1~

_Six years ago…_

"Wake up, baka!" yelled a short, raven haired girl standing at the edge of Ichigo's bed. Ichigo did not reply, instead pulled his bed sheets up to cover his head. Rukia shook her head in annoyance, then pulled down the covers and threw them on the floor. "Hurry up! I don't want to be late on our first day back at school after winter break!"

Ichigo groaned as the bright sunlight hit his face. "Why don't we just skip today? Sleep instead."

"We can't just skip our classes!" Rukia sighed, then grabbed a hold of his feet. She started to pull him off of his bed.

Ichigo sat up immediately. "Alright! I'll get ready! Now get out of my room so I can change!" Rukia laughed as she dodged the pillow he threw at her, then backed out of his room, closing the door as she left.

"Just don't go to sleep!" she yelled at him, her voice slightly muffled by the closed door. Ichigo smiled. Even though he would never admit it to her, he liked it when she woke him up in the morning. He loved her angelic voice that pulled him out of his dreamland, and those violet eyes that were always the first thing he saw. Ichigo would never admit it to her, but he loved Rukia. He loved everything about her, from her petite appearance, to her vibrant personality. He smiled, then launched himself off his bed to get dressed before Rukia began walking to school without him.

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

"Today is a very special day, Ichigo. Did you know that?" Ichigo smiled inwardly. Of course he knew what day it was. How could he forget?

"It is?" he asked, feigning ignorance.

"Of course it is! It's my birthday baka! Don't tell me you already forgot!" she pouted, upset that he best friend didn't even remember her birthday. Ichigo sighed.

"Of course I remembered. What kind of friend would I be to forget my own best friend's birthday?" he smiled warmly, pulling his hand out of his pocket. In his hand, he revealed the keychain that he bought Rukia for her birthday. On the keychain was a small sky-blue purse, and when Rukia unclasped the clasp, and inside she found a small stuffed chappy inside. Rukia gasped, her eyes lighting up as she saw the bunny.

"Thank you! I love it!" She pulled out the bunny and cuddled it to her cheek, feeling the velvet fur tickle her. She smiled at him, a beautiful smile that radiated pule happiness that immediately brightened his day. They continued the walk to school in silence, Ichigo smiling the entire way. He was happy that Rukia was so happy. Just making her smile made his heart feel as if it was going to beat out of his chest. He loved knowing that he had been the one to make her smile. She was the moon to his sun, the light to his dark, his perfect balance. He loved her more than anything else in his world.

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

[Flashback]

"_Wake up Ichigo. It's time for school!" He heard the sound of shutters being opened, and little Ichigo winced as the bright sunlight hit his face, and he hid his face under his pillow. He heard a sigh from his mom as she saw him try to hide. "Come on darling. Are we going to do this again today?" He felt the covers being yanked off him then hands on his sides tickling him. Ichigo let out a squeal as he began to giggle uncontrollably._

_ "S-stop it!" he cried between laughs._

_ "Only when you surrender and get out of bed!" _

_ "O-ok! I w-w-will!" the hands stopped, and he gasped for breath. _

_ "I'll see you down stairs in a few minutes! If you don't…" His mom left the treat to hang there as she left his room to make him breakfast. Ichigo reluctantly forced himself to climb out of bed and get dressed for school._

…

"_Have a good day at school!" his mom smiled at her son, giving him a kiss on the cheek before she drove away. Ichigo turned around, and walked slowly to hi school. If there was one thing he wasn't looking forward to, it was the loneliness that school brought. Everyone had friends except for Ichigo. Whenever anyone would try and approach him, they would shun him away because he was different. It wasn't his fault that he had orange hair, but he cursed his luck with all his might. _

_ Ichigo opened the door and walked into the room, already used to the whispers that accompanied. He sat down and put his head down on his desk, ready for another lonely day._

_ "Okay class. Today we have a new student! Her name is Rukia so treat her well okay?" his teacher said with a smile as she heard the chorus of "hai" from the class. "Go take a seat anywhere, Rukia. And welcome to our class." Ichigo sighed, knowing that she would probably just shun him like the rest of the class would._

_ "Hello," a strong, but soft voice said. Ichigo looked up to see the new girl talking to him._

_ "You're talking to me?" _

_ "Of course I am! Why wouldn't I?"_

_ Ichigo looked down sadly. "Because my hair is different…"_

_ "So?" she said, and reached over to pet his head, "I like it! Black hair is everywhere! But orange hair is cool!"_

_ "Really?" _

_ "Yep!" Ichigo smiled. Maybe now he could know how it felt to have a friend. Rukia returned the smile, and they began to chat avidly about their family and hobbies._

_ "Hey look, that brat is talking to that new girl," A voice interrupted their conversation as a boy with short, messy black hair approached their table. Rukia looked up at him._

_ "Who are you?"_

_ "My name is Akihiro. Now why don't you come and hang out with us instead of this brat?"_

_ "Why not? Who are you to tell me what to do? And why are you calling him a brat?" _

_ "Well, look at him! He's a weirdo! What type of kid has orange hair? And a name like Ichigo? Seriously, who would name their kid strawberry?" _

_ Rukia narrowed her eyes at Akihiro. "So? I bet he's a much better person then you are. Now stop teasing him before I beat you up."_

_ Akihiro laughed, "Seriously? A girl beat me up? Ha you should hang out with him. Join the weirdo crowd!" He continued to laugh, and everyone around him began to laugh as well. Ichigo lowered his head in shame. Rukia looked over at him, then stood up and buried her fist into Akihiro's stomach, effectively stopping his laughter. He flew back a few steps, landing with a thud. Everyone around them stopped and stared at Rukia in shock. _

_ "Don't you dare go around calling people names! I don't want to hear you say anything bad like that about Ichigo again or I'll kill you!" Akihiro stepped back in shock, before fleeing the scene. The class gasped in shock, and Ichigo's jaw dropped. No one had ever stood up to him like that before._

_ She smiled at him, "So, what were we talking about?" Ichigo grinned. So this is what it felt like to have his first friend._

[end flashback]

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

Ichigo and Rukia had been friends since forever, and despite their differences, they had remained friends throughout the years. From the time they were kids, and even now, Rukia had always been there for Ichigo when he had needed her most, and Ichigo had always done the same. She was irreplaceable in his heart. They kept no secrets from each other, except for one. They were inseparable, and everyone always considered them an item even though both continuously denied it. Even so, Ichigo still hoped that she felt the same way about him as he did for her.

"Ichigo! Rukia! Good morning!" called a cheerful voice from her seat as they walked into their busy classroom.

"Hey Orihime." Rukia smiled as she saw their friends Orihime and Renji sitting at a bench waving at them: Orihime excitedly, and Renji in a bored manner. "Anything new over the break?"

"No," Orihime sighed, "But did you hear about the little green aliens that I found in my closet? I heard that…" Ichigo sighed as he blocked out Orihime's usual rant. Truthfully, he had no idea how Rukia could handle Orihime's boundless energy. He walked over to Renji.

"So anything new happening with you?" he asked him. Renji shook his head.

"Nope. Have you confessed yet?"

"No." Ichigo lowered his voice, "But I do plan on confessing soon."

Renji's eyes widened. "Finally! Geez, what took you so long!"

"Shh!" Ichigo put one hand over the latter's mouth, sending a cautious glance toward where the girls were continuing to talk animatedly about their winter break. He sighed in relief as he saw that Rukia hadn't heard, but still glared at Renji. "What if they had heard?"

Renji just rolled his eyes, "They weren't paying attention. So when are you planning on confessing? I'm really getting tired of having to deal with your lovesick puppy act."

"Tonight. I'll meet text Rukia to come meet me at the back of the gym, and finally, there, I'll tell her."

"Good luck. You'll need it. And beware though-" Whatever Renji was about to say was cut short as the bell rang and the teacher began his lesson. With a sigh Renji turned away, leaving Ichigo to wonder just what it was the Renji was going to warn him about. What he didn't notice was that he wasn't the only person who had been listening in on their little conversation, and that one person was desperate to keep them apart.

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

_So, _Senna thought to herself, _Ichigo is planning on confessing to Rukia? Well, that won't be happening anytime soon. I have a plan... and I won't fail. _

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A.N.: … *hides* I don't update for two months, and all I can come up with is this crappy excuse for a chapter? OTL. Sorry! But the good news is that I'll be updating faster because I finally planned out everything that I am going to write. This story will be 8 chapters long, including the prologue and epilogue. The next chapter won't be boring like this one, I promise, because next chapter is when everything begins to go wrong. I hope to get the next chapter out within the next week or two weeks, and it will be longer than this one. It's hard to keep updating though, because high school is making my life much busier then I thought it would be… espicaially with my AP and honors classes, then band on top of that… I kinda rushed on this one (I typed it all in one night) so sorry again!


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